This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 8/12/2011.
The 1993-94 Houston Rockets entered the playoffs as a two seed in the Western Conference with a 58-24 regular season record on their way to winning the first of back-to-back NBA Championships. The Rockets defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round before eliminating the Phoenix Suns in seven games in the Conference Semifinals. Houston would face off against the Utah Jazz in the Conference Finals, home to the infamous “Clock Incident” where the Jazz were unable to capitalize on an extra eight seconds of game time at the conclusion of Game 4. The Rockets took the series in five games and would go on to face the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals. After splitting the first two games in Houston, the Knicks won two out of three games at Madison Square Garden. The Rockets returned home for Game 6 in which Olajuwon blocked a last-second attempt at a game-winner by John Starks, giving Houston an 86-84 victory and forcing a Game 7. The Rockets won a low-scoring Game 7 90-84, giving “Clutch City” their first NBA Championship. Olajuwon outscored Ewing for the seventh time in the series and his 26.9 points per game average secured him NBA Finals MVP honors. This size 12, 10k gold staff member’s ring weighs 34 grams. The top panel reads “1994 WORLD CHAMPIONS” surrounding a red and blue enameled Houston Rockets team logo and approximately .70-carats worth of round-cut diamonds. The left panel reads “PAGAN” above a casted image of the Houston skyline and the Larry O'Brien NBA Championship Trophy and “STAFF” along the bottom of the panel. The right panel reads “CLUTCH CITY” above a casted image of the Houston skyline and a red and blue enameled NBA logo. Below that is a scroll engraved with the team’s record, “58-24”. The inside of the ring is stamped “INTERGOLD 10K”. The ring is in MINT overall condition and comes with the original wooden presentation box with an engraved plaque that reads “JOHN PAGAN 1994 NBA CHAMPION HOUSTON ROCKETS”.